Which Way’s Up?

Today’s scripture: Genesis 45:1-15 (ESV-text and audio) (KJV) (The Message) What might God be saying to me?

My thoughts (Jeff Miner):

Joseph’s life story is one of my favorite in the Bible, and it is so instructive.

His up-and-down experiences remind me of one of my all-time favorite jokes, which goes like this:

One day Janis crossed paths with Monica, an old friend she hadn’t seen for years. Janis asked Monica how life was going.

Monica: “Well, five years ago, I got married.”

Janis: “That’s good!”

Monica: “But my husband is sooo ugly.”

Janis: “Oh, that’s bad.”

Monica: “But he is a millionaire.”

Janis: “Oh, that’s good.”

Monica: “But he’s very stingy.”

Janis: “Oh dear, that’s bad.”

Monica: “But in his stinginess he did manage to build me a palatial mansion.”

Janis: “Wow! That’s good.”

Monica: “But then it burned down.”

Janis: “Yikes, that’s bad.”

Monica: “And when it burned down, he was in it.”

At this point, Janis didn’t know what to say!

The whole point of this joke, of course, is that you can’t judge a story midway through. Before forming a judgment — is this good, is this bad? — you’ve got to know all the facts.

Joseph’s life is just like that. Here is the Cliffs Notes version of his ups and downs:

Up:Joseph is his father’s favorite, the spoiled youngest of 12 sons.

Down: In retribution, Joseph’s brothers sell him into slavery.

Up: Joseph is purchased by a wealthy Egyptian and is soon entrusted with managing his entire estate.

Down: Then the master’s wife falsely accuses Joseph of making sexual advances, and Joseph is thrown in prison.

Up: The chief of the prison soon realizes Joseph is a good guy, falsely accused, so he entrusts Joseph with significant authority within the prison. As a result, Joseph meets a friend of the Pharaoh who also has been thrown in prison, and interprets one of his dreams. The meaning of the dream is that Pharaoh will commute his friend’s sentence. When this comes to pass, the friend promises to tell Pharaoh that Joseph has been unjustly imprisoned.

Down: But the friend gets busy and forgets to ever mention Joseph to Pharaoh.

Up: Then the Pharaoh has a nightmare and tells his friend. That causes his friend to remember Joseph and tell Pharaoh. Joseph is brought to Pharaoh, interprets his dream, is released from prison, and soon rises to the top of Pharaoh’s government.

Down: An enormous famine arises.

Up: The famine forces Joseph’s brothers to travel to Egypt to buy grain. They appear before Joseph, who is responsible for grain distribution. Joseph recognizes his brothers, and after a cat-and-mouse game with them, he reveals himself and they are reconciled. Joseph’s entire family is able to move to Egypt and survive the famine. This is the family that would eventually give rise to the nation of Israel.

Clearly, there were many times when Joseph could have said, “Everything is lost; God is dead; life makes no sense.” And many other times when Joseph might have thought, “Wow! I’ve arrived at the pinnacle of God’s plan for my life,” only to eventually discover that there were additional twists and turns lying ahead.

The application to you and me is obvious.

Thought for the day: Next time you’re tempted to think you’ve got your life all figured out — for better or worse — think again. Only God knows. So sit back and enjoy the unfolding drama!

We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the guidelines on the How to Pray page.